Galveston Island was the temporary seat of government of the Republic of Texas during the Texas Revolution.

Galveston Island was the temporary seat of government of the Republic of Texas during the Texas Revolution.

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==== Parent County ====

==== Parent County ====

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'''1838--'''Galveston County was created 15 May 1838 from Brazoria and Liberty Counties. '''County seat:''' Galveston <ref name="Handybook">''The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America'',10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).</ref>

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'''1838--'''Galveston County was created 15 May 1838 from&nbsp;[[Brazoria County, Texas|Brazoria]] and [[Liberty County, Texas|Liberty]] Counties. '''County seat:''' Galveston <ref name="Handybook">''The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America'',10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).</ref>

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==== Boundary Changes ====

==== Boundary Changes ====

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See an interactive map of Galveston County [http://www.n2genealogy.com/texas/tx-maps.html border changes].

==== Record Loss ====

==== Record Loss ====

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Galveston is a very low-lying area in Texas, the county seat being largely on an island, and thus it is vulnerable to weather disasters, mainly being hurricanes, and occasionally, tornadoes.

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In September 1900, Galveston suffered what is to this day the worst United States hurricane disaster in terms of loss of life. That storm, known as the Galveston Hurricane, killed over 6,000 people. The hurricane also for all practical purposes swept the island clean, although some structures did survive.

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Therefore, unless the record or a duplicate copy or other item that recorded the same data was moved to an inland area prior to September 1900, it is likely the record was destroyed in the hurricane. One should check in nearby counties for any such replications of any records from the Galveston area prior to 1900, such as neighboring counties, regional offices of churches, and other similar repositories, for records from this county.

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Since 1900, a seawall was built along the outward facing shore, and subsequent hurricanes, including Ike in 2008, did somewhat less damage as the seawall for the ost part has kept the storm surge produced by any hurricane from overwashing the island by and large. In fact, one can drive along the seawall itself which will give any visitor an idea of just how serious the 1900 disaster really was.

*[http://www.newspaperarchive.com/ Newspaperarchive.com] ($) has historical newspapers available on-line. Their database has [http://www.newspaperarchive.com/BrowseLocations.aspx?cntry=7&st=94&ci=10741 Galveston newspapers] from the early 1800's that covered local news on Galveston County residents as well as residents from surrounding counties.

*[https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/show#uri=http://www.familysearch.org/searchapi/search/collection/1375599 Texas Death Index 1964 to 1998] [no images] Name index to Texas Statewide Death Certificates or four million people who have died since 1964.

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*[https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/show#uri=http://www.familysearch.org/searchapi/search/collection/1320964 Texas Death Records 1890 – 1976 [with images]]<br>Name index and images of statewide death certificates, 1890-1976. The name index has been created by FamilySearch and is tied to images of the Texas death certificates. Few certificates are available prior to 1903.

Parent County

Boundary Changes

Record Loss

Galveston is a very low-lying area in Texas, the county seat being largely on an island, and thus it is vulnerable to weather disasters, mainly being hurricanes, and occasionally, tornadoes.

In September 1900, Galveston suffered what is to this day the worst United States hurricane disaster in terms of loss of life. That storm, known as the Galveston Hurricane, killed over 6,000 people. The hurricane also for all practical purposes swept the island clean, although some structures did survive.

Therefore, unless the record or a duplicate copy or other item that recorded the same data was moved to an inland area prior to September 1900, it is likely the record was destroyed in the hurricane. One should check in nearby counties for any such replications of any records from the Galveston area prior to 1900, such as neighboring counties, regional offices of churches, and other similar repositories, for records from this county.

Since 1900, a seawall was built along the outward facing shore, and subsequent hurricanes, including Ike in 2008, did somewhat less damage as the seawall for the ost part has kept the storm surge produced by any hurricane from overwashing the island by and large. In fact, one can drive along the seawall itself which will give any visitor an idea of just how serious the 1900 disaster really was.

Census

Church

Church records and the information they provide vary significantly depending on the denomination and the record keeper. They may contain information about members of the congregation, such as age, date of baptism, christening, or birth; marriage information and maiden names; and death/burial date and place. For general information about Texas denominations, view the Texas Church Records wiki page.

Court

Land

After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions, including deeds and mortgages, have been recorded by the county. You can obtain copies of these land records by writing to the county clerk at the county courthouse. For more information, see Texas Land and Property.

The FamilySearch Catalog lists microfilm copies of deeds, trust deeds, and mortgages of many counties.

Local Histories

Local histories are available for Galveston County, Texas Genealogy. County histories may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories, see the wiki page section Texas Local Histories.

Newspaperarchive.com ($) has historical newspapers available on-line. Their database has Galveston newspapers from the early 1800's that covered local news on Galveston County residents as well as residents from surrounding counties.

Probate

Probate records of Texas have been kept by the probate clerk in each county courthouse. You can obtain copies of the records from the clerk's office. In most counties, all information pertaining to a probate case is recorded in the "probate minutes."

Content: Probate Records may give the decedent's date of death, names of his or her spouse, children, parents, siblings, in-laws, neighbors, associates, relatives, and their places of residence.

Record types: Wills, estates, guardianships, naturalizations, marriage, adoption, and birth and death records.

Taxation

Texas tax records complement land records and can be used in place of censuses or to supplement the years between censuses. Because only persons who owned taxable property were listed, many residents were not included in tax lists. There may also be gaps of several years in the tax records of some counties. For more information, see the wiki page Texas Taxation.

1846-1910Texas County Tax Rolls lists FHL films with county tax lists. The lists vary by county and year. Most records are between the years of 1846 - 1910.

Texas Death Records 1890 – 1976 [with images]Name index and images of statewide death certificates, 1890-1976. The name index has been created by FamilySearch and is tied to images of the Texas death certificates. Few certificates are available prior to 1903.